Flexibility… Applied

At Justin’s Place we pride ourselves on being flexible! There is very rarely a “right” answer but only a prefered answer for that particular child, day and circumstance. Each child that comes to Justin’s Place completes an application, parent phone call, and intake assessment. This helps us get to know them and also hear the desires of our parents and participants. If a participants goal is a relaxed, enjoyable time, we will direct their session differently than say, a child whose goal is developing language skills and fine motor development! Here is an example of how this flexibility is applied…

If a child has difficulty getting their shoes dirty and dealing with the feeling of sand in their socks, we can handle this a million different ways! This is based on our level of rapport with the child, the goals of the child, our comfort level and skills and feedback from their parent. For a kiddo with a goal of overcoming tactile defensiveness, we may ask them to take 3 steps once dismounting their horse, we may race to the block, or we may offer a reward at the block if they walk on their own feet. For a kiddo whose focus is relaxed enjoyment, we will do whatever makes them happy!! We could dismount to the block, we could dismount and get a piggy back ride from our sidewalker out of the arena, we could ride out of the arena on our horse and dismount on the driveway, we could get carried out by our instructor…. again, no “right” answer!!

What a pleasure it is to work in an environment where we can put the child’s preferences, goals and personalities at the forefront of our decisions!! Just one of the million reasons why Justin’s Place is so amazing!